Are Your Taxes Paying For Democratic Retreat?
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Funding For Retreat?
Is it a case of congressional Democrats saying one thing then doing another?WASHINGTON —Is it a case of congressional Democrats saying one thing then doing another?
Legislators scolded financial executives for holding corporate retreats at posh hotels and now, the House Democratic Caucus is holding a legislative retreat this weekend in Williamsburg, Va. at a luxury spa and golf resort.
We wanted to know who’s picking up the tab—so NBC 4‘s Patrick Preston investigated to find out.
The Congressional Democrats are meeting at the Kingsmill Resort and Spa, where members will pay between $119 and $400 each night for their rooms. But taxpayers pick up the rest of the cost.
Taxpayer dollars are being spent for transportation—a chartered Amtrak train—and security to protect members of Congress, as well as facility and speaker fees.
When Preston asked the spokesperson for the Democratic Caucus for the total taxpayer expense, he was told that no one had that answer.
Democratic Caucus spokeswoman Emily Barocas said they don’t have to report the costs until April, but The Hill newspaper in Washington reported that previous Democratic retreats have cost taxpayers more than $500,000 over the past five years.
Barocas also said, “We are conscious of the image of the retreat. This isn’t a chance to relax and get massages,“ adding that Kingsmill was chosen because it could accommodate a large group as the Democrats set their legislative agenda.
She also defended using taxpayer money by saying, “Republicans use lobbyists to fund their retreats. We feel that’s unethical. We split the costs.“
Local Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy’s representative said she is paying $975 from her campaign funds to attend. Congressman Zack Space won’t be at the Kingsmill, as he is meeting with constituents in Ohio.
Last weekend, Republicans attended a Virginia retreat indirectly subsidized by lobbyists.
House Republican Leader John Boehner’s spokesperson, Jessica Towhey said, “House Republicans comply with congressional ethics rules for our retreat, which is open to media coverage and is not paid for with taxpayers dollars.”
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Reader Reactions
Sorry, we are not missing the point. Obama has already begun to break his own lobbyist campaign promises. I have read several articles on the subject; in liberal and conservative news. It is a pure fact that both parties deal with lobbyists. That said, at least they are paying for the Republican retreat while the Democrats attempt to look righteous at taxpayers expense. I voted for real change, not this fake stuff. I am disappointed.
You people are missing the point.
The point is that Channel 4 failed to provide a balanced report on what both the Democrats are doing and what the Republicans did. While Channel 4 did mention that the Republicans were indirectly funded by lobbyists they failed to mention that 45 lobbyists paid a minimum of $25,000 (that’s over 1.1 million dollars) to attended the conference with the Republican lawmakers while the Democrats have barred lobbyists from their conference. This seems to be an important fact that was not mentioned by the Channel 4 report.
What another Gov’t Rip Off of taxpayers? They have taxpayer supplied offices and meeting rooms so they don’t need a “retreat” This money could go to Columbus to keep the police recruits employed. Mary Jo Kilroy should refuse to attend as sghould any other responsible Democrat.
Both parties should be ashamed at wasting money. But I would rather support the Republican retreat (not costing the taxpayers a dime) vs. the Democrats (50% covered by the taxpayer). Both parties deal with lobbyists. They might as well lessen the taxpayer burden while they are at it.
Also, wondering if Truthwatch is really naive enough to think that the Dems are not influenced by lobbyists. That is how so many politicians are able to become such large tax cheats, they become multimillionaire lobbyists when they leave government “service” (and that term is used loosely!).
So, let me get this straight. The Dems in Congress slam dunk corporate CEO’s for supposedly using taxpayer money for retreats at a spa. Then the Dems go on a retreat to a spa using taxpayer money. Guess I’m missing why one is ok and the other is not.
The Dems really should be ashamed of themselves for this flagrant misuse of our money during this economic crisis.
It is appalling for any of the political parties to be having such retreats. Maybe it is time for those of us who struggle, who pay our bills, try to make a go of our American dream, to stand up, kick those out of office and put some of us who know how to budget in office. I am just sick of all this mess, it is all the parties fault they all shoved us into this and now we are the ones left holding the empty piggy banks.
You have given an example of a half baked report comparing apples and oranges.
You say the range of room costs for the Democrats but not what the range was when the
Republicans had their retreat. The Democratic spokesperson said that the Republicans paid for their retreat with funds from lobbyists. But you failed to follow up on this assertion. If the Republicans received funding from lobbyists, who were the lobbyists representing, and how much did they pay to influence the Republican law makers. Where did the Republicans hold their retreat? How much did each party’s retreat cost the taxpayers on a per capita basis?
Next time make like comparisons and follow up on unsubstantiated assertions to determine if they are scurrilous or have merit.
BigT, I thought I was commenting on the story not others opinions. I am not hurting from any loss, I voted and whatever the outcome of the election I did my part. I don’t vote along any party lines, I vote for who I want. So again, I am not hurting from any loss, the American system worked.
Please tell me why President Obama had to fly from the White House to Williamsburg on Air Force One Jet? The helicopter not good enough? He took the helicopter to fly out and the 10 minute ride in the jet cost how much????
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